At the core of the project, is an approach utilizing five basic organizing leadership practices that draw upon a rich history of community organizing, social movements, and campaigns. This framework is taught at the Harvard Kennedy School by Dr. Marshall Ganz, a celebrated civil rights organizer, and has been adapted in cultures and contexts launching grassroots efforts around the world.

Participants will be intentionally recruited in small groups of 5-7 people where they will learn together over the 2.5-days and explore possible campaigns within their own organization, community or cause. Each participant will learn the following five practices with the goal of returning home to apply their learnings:

How to articulate a story of why you were called to lead, a story of those whom you hope to mobilize, and a story of action: self, us, and now.

How to build intentional relationships as the foundation of purposeful collective actions.

How to structure a team with shared purpose, ground rules and roles for effective leadership.

How to strategize turning resources into the power to achieve clear goals.

How to translate strategy into measurable, motivational, and effective action.

The workshops will be coordinated by Dan Grandone, who brings 19-years experience as a community organizer and leadership trainer. Dan has adapted this framework in cultures and contexts across the country and internationally, and served as a Teaching Fellow with Professor Ganz. For the initial workshops, trainers will be recruited from the Leading Change Network 501(c)(3) – a global community of practice with extensive experience leading trainings. A priority of the WiLD Project is building capacity of new trainers in this framework. Over the past two years we’ve seen the growth of an expanding number of Wisconsin trainers who with coaching support have taken an active role in leading training sessions!

We are committed to supporting a diverse group of applicants to grow leadership capacity across Wisconsin. The total registration fee is $100 per person. For lodging, the additional cost is typically $120 total for two nights with a shared room.